1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a pulp sampling system for determination of the degree of the delignification of pulp and can be used for all routine Kappa number tests or other similar tests on pulp samples taken prior to and after entering the paper mill refining system. The pulps included are blowline, washer, and decker pulps, inlet pulp to the first paper mill refiner, as well as refined pulps up to the paper machine driers. More particularly, the invention relates to an accurate and reproducible means of obtaining an exact amount of pulp suspension of a desired consistency and concentration for Kappa number determination or like tests.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
The Kappa test in the pulp and paper industry is established and well known. The standard test will be found in the Official Standard for Pulp Testing--TAPPI Standard T236OS-76. TAPPI is the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry having its headquarters at One Dunwoody Park, Atlanta, Ga. 30338. The Kappa number is the number of cubic centimeters of 0.1 N potassium permanganate solution consumed by one gram of moisture-free pulp under the conditions specified in the procedure. The results are corrected to 25.degree. C., and to 50 percent consumption of the permanganate added. An alternate test currently used with the pulp sampling system is a modification of the above mentioned TAPPI Standard Kappa Test which uses a Waring blender for further pulp refining, and a reduced reaction time (5 minutes compared to 10 minutes in the TAPPI Standard).
Currently the pulp sample to make such test is obtained by means of a time-consuming and potentially quite inaccurate "dip and pour" technique, which involves pouring refined pulp into a large bucket, diluting to 10 liters, and agitating with a large mixer until homogeneous, after which a consistency is obtained by dipping a known volume out of the bucket and measuring the dry weight of the pulp so obtained. The volume needed to deliver the set weight of pulp is then calculated, and a second volume is dipped out of the bucket for use in the test.
The system of the present invention eliminates the "dip and pour" technique and provides the means for obtaining automatically an exact volume of pulp of a certain consistency and concentration which volume of pulp can be used in the actual Kappa number titration itself.